


Easy Way

by kouseiarima



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist, 四月は君の嘘 | Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso | Your lie in April
Genre: Crossover Pairings, M/M, Trans Male Character, crossover AU, depends on how far i get with this lol, i bet no one will read this bc of the ship but trust me. Trust Me it's good, more characters maybe to be added later?, prince!Kousei AU, rated t because ed swears a lot lmao
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-02
Updated: 2017-12-02
Packaged: 2019-02-09 17:23:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,347
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12892992
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kouseiarima/pseuds/kouseiarima
Summary: Kousei Arima has never had an interesting life. He could dream of one, sure, but being the sickly crown prince of Xing was not exactly the most thrilling thing he could've imagined. But a golden-haired boy turning up in his garden changed things considerably.





	1. purple hydrangea

Bright light filtered in from the window and illuminated black locks of hair, spread across the copious number of pillows on the four-poster bed in the center of the room. Motes of dust floated into view and out again, fluttering off to land on a chair, or a potted plant, or perhaps a piano. The boy sleeping on the bed filled the room with soft snores, and rolled over, attempting to escape from the light assaulting his dreams. But it was morning, after all, and his body decided it was time, so his eyes fluttered open, and he sat up to stretch, a yawn escaping his lips. He patted his messy hair down, hoping to tame it, with little success.

  
Kousei Arima had never been keen on mornings. In fact, he was certain that he never would be.

  
He twisted himself out of the mess of blankets on the bed, and swung his legs off the side. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes with one hand while fumbling for his glasses with the other. The tile floor was cold beneath his feet, and he cringed before standing up and hopping precariously to the nearest rug. “Whew,” he huffed to himself. It was winter, and the whole castle was cold. Kousei desperately wanted some hot chocolate, and the space between him and the door to his room seemed like a mile. Not only that, but the walk all the way down to the kitchen seemed even worse.

Kousei thought about hunting around for some slippers, but decided that was more effort than it was worth. So, sooner rather than later, he found himself hopping from one foot to the other down the hall, toward the kitchen, as if he were playing a game of “the floor is lava”.

  
Sometimes, a servant would poke their head out into the hall. “Good morning, my lord. Having fun?” they would ask, watching him make a fool of himself, and to that he would nod, giving them a big ol’ smile, and hop past them down the hall.

  
After a while, it began to seem like there was no end to the staircases he was going to have to go down.

  
Finally, somehow, he made it all the way down to the kitchen. His eyes lit up upon spotting a black-haired woman standing at the counter. “Hiroko!” Kousei called out to her.

  
“Oh, good morning, Kousei,” she said, her smile bleeding into her voice as she turned to greet him. Kousei was still hopping back and forth between his feet. The floor was still cold. It apparently didn’t get any warmer the longer you walked on it. “You look like you’re having fun.”

  
“Why don’t we have more rugs in this place? The floor’s freezing.”

  
Hiroko laughed, and said, “I’ll have to make a note of that next time we’re rearranging. Wouldn’t want our only prince’s feet freezing.” Kousei shot her an overexaggerated frown, and laughed, hopping over to the woman before clinging to her sleeve.

  
“Could you have someone make me some hot chocolate? I’m cold.” Hiroko patted his head, and sighed.

  
“Very demanding this morning, my little prince,” Hiroko said good-naturedly, and detached Kousei from her sleeve before heading off to the kitchen. She turned back only for a moment to say, “Go wait in the garden. I’ll bring it to you.”

  
Obediently, and in his pajamas, Kousei wandered out into the garden, sitting at a table surrounded by flowers. He sneezed. It was cold. He regretted not bringing one of his many blankets down with him. His mind wandered to a book he’d been reading as he scanned the garden, thinking about the girl and her cat who’d wandered down the rabbit hole in their garden. He wondered if there were any rabbit holes in _his_ garden.

  
He entertained that thought for a moment. What if he did fall down a rabbit hole? What might he meet down there? He thought maybe he’d meet a really cute cat. Or maybe he’d get kidnapped by that evil queen.

  
Kousei frowned. The latter sounded like a bit too much for his taste.

  
His train of thought derailed at the sound of a rustling in the purple hydrangea bush beside him. Kousei turned to look at it, hoping maybe he’d see a white rabbit just waiting to take him away. But instead of a white rabbit, the head of a boy with golden blond hair popped out to greet him.

  
Kousei shrieked and jumped back. “W-Who…! What are you…! How did you—!”

  
“Shhh! Quiet!” the boy whispered, jumping up to put a finger up to Kousei’s lips. “Please, shut up for a sec, I gotta figure out what the fuck I’m gonna do and you’re gonna give me away.”

  
Kousei nearly knocked his chair over trying to make a run for it. “What do you mean, shut up? You’re, like, invading my house and my garden and Hiroko’s gonna be here any minute and you—”

  
“Oh my god, look, I’m not gonna hurt you or whatever. I don’t even know where the hell I am except for the fact that there’s guards fuckin’ everywhere and one almost saw me. So please just give me half a second to figure my shit out, okay? Yeesh.” The boy slid a hand up through his bangs, sighing and sinking back down part of the way into the bush. He looked scruffy, and scrawny, like he hadn’t eaten in a while. His hair was so bright in the winter sunlight, it nearly blinded Kousei, and his eyes were sparkling, like someone had laced gold into his hazel irises.

  
“Okay, one question—” Kousei began, but was interrupted by the sound of the heavy back door opening. “Oh no, okay, hide, quick, if you don’t want to get caught.”

  
“Oh, so now you’re helping—”

  
“Just shut up and do it, okay?”

  
The boy obeyed and sunk down out of sight just as Hiroko rounded the corner, a steaming mug of hot chocolate in her hands. “Who were you talking to?” she asked, setting the cup down on the table.

  
“Just myself, as usual,” Kousei murmured sheepishly. Hiroko smiled, and turned on her heel, heading back toward the door.

  
“Okay. Well, I’ll leave you to that conversation with yourself, then. Must have been riveting.” And then she was gone.

  
Kousei and the boy let out a joint sigh of relief as the door slammed shut.

  
“Okay, now, tell me, how did you get in here?” Kousei asked, pulling aside the flowers to reveal brilliant gold. “You’re in the garden of the imperial palace. I don’t know how you could’ve managed to get in here without knowing where you were getting into.”

  
The boy looked sheepish. “Ah, shit, you’re a smart one, aren’t you? Bad luck for little ol’ me. Yeah, I know where I am. But I’m not here to rob you or anything. I got into a little, uh… _trouble_ on the street, you know how it is, and I had to escape somehow, and I knew they wouldn’t look here if I snuck into the castle garden, so…”

  
Kousei practically slapped himself in the face. “That is the absolute _most idiotic_ thing I have ever heard.” The boy looked like he was going to die.

  
And then Kousei smiled. “I’ll take it though.” And then he was doubled over laughing, a breathy laugh because his lungs didn’t work all that well, but a laugh all the same. “I guess you just got really lucky, because I’m probably the only person in this whole castle who isn’t planning on turning you in.”

  
The boy’s face lit up. “Wait, what? I just told you I’m running from the police and that I broke into this garden place intentionally, and you’re just gonna let me off the hook? I think maybe you’re the idiotic one here, not me, pal.”

  
Kousei giggled. “Well, I mean, it’s certainly not too late for me to change my mind, so if you really want me to turn you in, I will. You did just insult a crown prince of Xing, after all.”

  
Suddenly, the boy was scrambling away. “Wait a minute. _Wait, wait, wait_. Crown prince of Xing? Are you fucking kidding me?” He looked like his eyes were about to pop out of his head. “I just happened to run into the crown prince, and he, you, you’re not— you’re not even going to turn me in? Sic the guards on me? Call your whole damn police force or whatever and have me sentenced to death? ‘Cause, like, you really should.”

  
Kousei looked taken aback. “Why would I do that? I just feel bad for you, that’s all. I know that the people outside of the castle don’t do so great, and, y’know, you look hungry, and I just… I dunno. I wouldn’t feel right turning you in. So, do you, um… want me to help you, or not?”

  
The boy frowned. “I don’t want your sympathy. We do just fuckin’ fine outside the castle, and I sure as hell don’t need the crown prince who’s never lifted a finger for anyone in his whole life lending me a hand.” But then the boy looked around, truly taking in his situation once again. “But, I guess… because I have no other option… maybe I’ll take you up on that.”

  
Kousei tried not to let the boy’s harsh words get to him. He was somewhat used to it; every time he’d left the castle, he heard the whispers. The people thought he was just lazy, that he should work harder for his people. They thought he was just selfish and didn’t want to do anything for his kingdom.

  
The truth, which Kousei knew, was that nothing could be farther from the truth. He would kill to go out and look for the Philosopher’s Stone instead of being cooped up in this stupid castle. He hated seeing his people looking so miserable all the time, and he knew it was his fault. But there was absolutely nothing he could do about it. He was simply too ill to go on that kind of adventure. In less than a day, he would have to be rushed right back. And that was why he had sent his two closest friends, Watari and Tsubaki, on the adventure for him. But the people didn’t know that, of course.

  
“Well, okay then. Wait here just a minute. I’ll be back.” Kousei got up from his seat, taking his mug of hot chocolate with him, and wandered back inside.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the purple variety of hydrangea symbolizes "a desire to deeply understand someone".
> 
> hope you enjoyed! comments are always appreciated. i don't think anyone's even going to read this but a boy can hope :') there will be more chapters posted sooner or later


	2. (almost) everything goes according to keikaku

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes, miraculously, things go somewhat according to plan. This is one of those times.

The boy had thought about asking where Kousei was going, but had decided against it, and sat in the bush for a while, contemplating how absolutely, ridiculously lucky he was. He couldn’t wait to tell his brother when— if— he got home.

He crossed his arms in front of his chest. He hadn’t even been doing anything wrong, for pete’s sake! He had just been in the wrong place at the wrong time, he decided, and the police were totally overreacting when they chased him all the way across town. Just because he’d started trouble before didn’t mean he was _always_ doing something wrong.

And what was he going to do about the situation he’d gotten himself into now? He was literally hiding in the bushes in the imperial palace garden, and none other than the crown prince was helping him sneak into the castle. The boy thought his brain might implode if he got any luckier.

He shifted in the brush. His nose was beginning to tickle from the flowery smells all around him. He hoped the prince would hurry up and come back.

Suddenly, he was overcome with worry. What if the prince’s scheme to get him into the castle involved _staying_ in the castle? What would Alphonse, his brother, do? He couldn’t take care of himself at all! What if he starved, or got hurt, or jumped, or killed? The boy would never forgive himself. He suddenly, very urgently wanted to get as far from the castle as possible. He sat up and peeked out of the bush.

There were guards blocking literally every escape route he had.

_Well, shit. Guess I’ll_ have _to go along with this prince kid._

The boy jumped at the sound of the back door scraping across the patio stones. He crouched back down as far into the bush as he could.

“Just me,” Kousei whispered, pushing the leaves aside and dropping a pile of clothes onto the boy’s lap. “If I’m going to sneak you into the castle, you’ll have to look the part, so I took the liberty of sneaking into the servant’s quarters and stealing a uniform for you. You’re welcome.” He smiled down at the boy, and then turned away, sitting back down at the table. “You should change. Promise I won’t look.”

The boy obediently, and as quietly as possible, changed into the clothes. “Okay, what now, Mr. Genius Prince?”

“Come out of the bush and sit across the table from me.” When the boy climbed from the bush, Kousei was smiling, clearly a little too proud of himself for his own good. And when the boy had sat down across from him, he began, “Well, you certainly look the part now. If I’m sneaking you in, I need to know your name. People will ask questions if I’m walking around accompanied by some random servant whose name I don’t even know, y’know?”

The boy hesitated. This didn’t seem like a very good idea to him. And how was he to know that he could trust this prince? He could be tricking him so he could throw him in a dungeon or something. But it didn’t seem like he had any other option, so… “The name’s Edward. Ed’s fine, though. What exactly is your plan, anyway? How do you plan to get me _out_ of the castle once you’ve gotten me in?”

Kousei looked down at his hands sheepishly. “To be honest, I haven’t really thought that far ahead.”

Ed ran a hand down his face. “Sounds great. Real reassuring. Couldn’t you have at least lied to make it _seem_ like you had some idea of what you’re doing?”

“No, no, it’ll be fine! Just trust me. Nobody will mess with you if you’re with me, believe me.”

In about fifteen minutes, Kousei was eating his words.

“Kousei, you know better than to keep servants from their jobs,” Hiroko was saying, looking pointedly at Ed. “What are you slacking on? You can’t just wander the castle with the prince instead of doing what you’re supposed to. Who’s your supervisor? And who do you think you are to follow the prince around this way?”

“Hiroko, wait!” Kousei interjected, stepping between Hiroko and Ed, who looked like he was ready to throw up. “I asked him to help me with something. In my room. There’s something that needs fixing up there, and so I asked his supervisor for help, and she sent him to help me. It’s fine. I promise. I’ll have him back to his normal job as soon as he’s done helping me.”

Hiroko looked suspicious, but reluctantly let them past her toward the stairs. “All right, go on, then. And don’t forget that you have a meeting with a suitor at noon.”

Once Ed and Kousei had reached the top of the first set of stairs, Kousei let out a sigh.

“Well, that was close,” he said, rubbing his thumb across the callouses on his fingers. “Sorry about that. She’s the only one who’s really like that. She’s practically my mother, so…”

“No worries. Just get me wherever we’re going already, would’ya?” Ed was looking greener in the face by the second.

“Oh, yeah, sure, got’cha.” He grabbed Ed’s hand, and lead him up staircase after staircase until they reached his room. He tugged the door open, tugged Ed in, and quietly pressed the door shut. “Well, um… I guess you’ll have to stay here until we can figure out how to get you out of the castle. Though, I’m not exactly sure that’s the wisest idea on my part, but I guess I don’t really have a choice. If you go anywhere else, the servants will convert you to one of them.” Kousei giggled, and plopped down on his bed.

“How long are you planning on keeping me here?” Ed asked, wandering away from the doorway and into the room. “I kinda… have something I need to get back to.”

“Um… I mean, I don’t really plan to _keep_ you here, y’know, I just have to find a way to get you out of here without anyone finding out…”

“And how long’s that gonna take?”

“Um… a day or two, maybe? I promise I won’t let anyone do anything to you or anything. Pretty much everyone in the castle has to listen to me, so…”

Ed huffed, sitting down in a corner and crossing his arms. “All right. I’m holding you to that, though.”

The two sat in silence for a long time, Kousei awkwardly fiddling with anything he could get his hands on, and Ed staring off into the distance. And they would’ve stayed like that all day, had someone not knocked on the door.

At the sound, Ed jumped up and scrambled into the bathroom to hide in Kousei’s shower. Kousei raced over to the door and yanked it open, clearly flustered and anxious, revealing a young servant holding a stack of clothing.

“Ah, g-good afternoon, my prince. Here is the outfit the queen picked out for you for your meeting with your suitor at noon. Please make haste in dressing and making your way down to the dining hall,” the servant said, transferring the stack to Kousei’s hands and bowing courteously.

“Okay. Thank you, that will be all.” Kousei closed the door and turned back to face the room. He walked over to the bed and put the stack down before stripping his pajama shirt off.

Suddenly, he heard the bathroom door creak open. He whipped his head around to see Ed standing in the doorway, face red as a tomato, attempting to splutter out an apology.

“I, oh, I’m, sorry, I didn’t mean to, uh, I’ll just—”

“ _Go back in there right now!”_ Kousei near-shouted, covering his chest with both arms and the stack of clothes. His face turned paper-white as Ed shot back into the bathroom, and he sat down on the bed to compose himself.

After calming himself down, he pulled his binder on over his head, put the outfit on, and shuffled to the bathroom door. He knocked and then said, “I’m sorry. You can come out now.”

As if he were walking on thin ice, Ed shuffled out of the bathroom. His eyes darted around the room, looking anywhere but at Kousei, and went back to his corner. And after a moment of awkward silence, he piped up, “I… had no idea that you were trans. And I also had no idea you were changing. So, uh. Sorry about that.”

Kousei looked down at his hands, still standing near the doorway to the bathroom. “You probably think I’m disgusting, right? I mean, everybody else seems to when they find out.”

“What?” Ed looked absolutely bewildered. “’Course not. My little brother’s trans. It’s not even a big deal, really. I’m just kinda shocked it’s not public knowledge, with how much gossip goes on in this kingdom.”

“You… think it’s fine…?” The prince looked like he had been about ready to cry. He let out a sigh and wandered back over to the bed. “Well, at least that’s one person.” And then he looked over at the clock on his nightstand. It read 12:04. “Oh, oh no, I’m late!” Kousei scrambled off the bed and toward the door. “Don’t get into any trouble! I’ll be back later, I have a meeting!” And then Kousei was gone, leaving behind him only the sound of footsteps quickly running down the corridor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> comments are always appreciated! i'm shocked that people are actually reading this, but to those of you who are: thank you so much and i hope you maybe start to love these boys as much as i do


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